Cat Piano Concerto creativity factor

Dear Flutists,

In the summer months, you want to relax right?
And the best way? Laugh, laugh, laugh and make music.
A purr-fect example: CATcerto on youtube.



A documentary I saw called The Music Instinct (Oliver Sacks, YoYo Ma, & Bobby McFerren etc.) revealed that human minds generate music no matter where the human is. In the above CATcerto creatiion you really are entertained. You are watching the human and the cat work together to map the music over time. Lovely font of ideas for film too. What a wonderful way to laugh *and* be creative and inspired.
Love it.
Happy July,
Jen

Plainsong performed by Robert Aitken

Dear Fluters,

I'll ask you all: How cool is this?
Robert Aitken performing "Plainsong (composed in 1977 by Robert Aitken)" live.
Have a look and listen.



I can't wait to find out whether he also recorded his work "Icycle" on film.
So fabulously cool to watch the composer perform his own effects!
Enjoy.
Best,
Jen

Peter & Wolf fingerings

Can anyone help me out with the fingerings for Peter and the Wolf flute 1 part, after rehearsal 4. The conductor is taking it like mad and I've practised it every which way and it's driving me to true bird-braindom. Thanks.

Dear fellow flutists,

Yes, I feel your pain. It is entirely unfair for Prokofiev to have written so many bird-brained figurinos for us. It's true cruelty to animals when it comes to playing these un-flutey birdcalls seven measures after rehearsal four (and oftimes at quarter = 100 to 104!! Eeeek!)

Note that you can leave down the low Db lever for this entire passage:


Also, there's a way to break down the four note flip-outs at eighth bar after rehearsal 4. Practise with these kinds of rhythms:


Finally, just after rehearsal five, this pianistic solo (obviously Prokofiev was *not* a flute player at all) is helped by use of the Bb side lever:

The Bb side lever helps you learn two things:
a) how to use the side of RH1 (the F-finger) on the Bb side lever so that the index finger's tip still remains in place over the F key.
b) how to be accurate with RH1 when playing B to Bb to G. You'll find your index-finger-Bflat or 1and1 fingering much improved after side-lever practise.

More fingering suggestions for Peter and the Wolf can be found on my webpage, and feel free to help yourself to simpler version of the Classical Symphony by Prokofiev with my piccolo re-writes from a previous blog post.
Hope this helps!
Darn that Serge for not checking with flute players before writing pianistic bird calls!! :>)
Doh! :>D
Additional flute-expert's Prokofiev fingerings welcome if you'd care to use the comment button below.

Best,
Jen